It took a year before Disney+ went live for fans in the U.S. after The Walt Disney unveiled the streaming service in 2018. Despite its delay, Disney+ has now managed to reach new heights in terms of subscribers.
The Walt Disney announced today that its streaming platform has surpassed 100 million paid subscribers worldwide. That"s around half of what Netflix pulled off by the end of last year as demand for entertainment surged due partly to shelter-in-place orders in many parts of the world.
Bob Chapek, Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company, revealed the company"s latest milestone during its virtual annual meeting of shareholders. He said:
“The enormous success of Disney+ —which has now surpassed 100 million subscribers—has inspired us to be even more ambitious, and to significantly increase our investment in the development of high-quality content. In fact, we set a target of 100+ new titles per year, and this includes Disney Animation, Disney Live Action, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic. Our direct-to-consumer business is the company’s top priority, and our robust pipeline of content will continue to fuel its growth.”
The streaming service has seen steady expansion since its launch in November 2019 in the U.S. After that, Disney+ arrived in the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, and Singapore. It was also launched in Europe in March of last year, although with reduced streaming quality in response to a request by the European Commission to help minimize strain on internet networks in the region amid growing demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Disney+ was also made available on the PlayStation 5 alongside other media apps like Apple TV, Netflix, Spotify, Twitch, and YouTube when the game console launched in October of last year.